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Princeton, NY — Joe Farrell and Joe Farley, collectively known as “The Joes,” the authors of the Keystone Tombstonesand Gotham Gravesseries of biographical histories were in Princeton, NJ on Tuesday May 16th, 2017, researching their upcoming book about the Founders, in preparation for the 250th anniversary of the birth of the USA. Seen here before the statue of patriot John Witherspoon, on the grounds of Princeton University, the two said a few words before those gathered (a huuuuuuge crowd of 1 — the photographer). The pair had been to Witherspoon’s grave in the Princeton Cemetery, very near the graves of patriot Aaron Burr, president Grover Cleveland, and novelist John O’Hara.

Also planned is a special edition entitled Murder, Massacres, and Mayhem in the Mid-Atlantic, for which they visited the graves of Kitty and Jose Menendez.

The Joes are always looking for speaking engagements, providing a humorous…

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released the bestsellers list for April. Doug Beed’s Chasing Understanding in the Jungles of Vietnam: My Year as a Black Scarf took the top spot. Living in the Afterlife by Michele Livingston was runner up.

SUNBURY PRESS – Bestsellers for April, 2017 (by Revenue)

Rank

Last Month

Title

Author

Category

1

1

Chasing Understanding in the Jungles of Vietnam

Doug Beed

Military Memoir

2

32

Living in the Afterlife

Michele Livingston

Spirituality

3

3

Dead of Spring

Sherry Knowlton

Thriller Fiction

4

11

Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last, 2nd Ed.

Mike Campbell

History

5

NEW

Had a Dying Fall

J M West

Thriller Fiction

6

4

American Berserk

Bill Morris

Memoir

7

8

The Sea is a Thief

David Parmalee

Historical Fiction

8

—

The Penns’ Manor of Spread Eagle and the Grist Mills of the Mahantango Valley

Steve Troutman

Local History

9

—

Tulpehocken Trail Traces

Steve Troutman

Local History

10

19

The B Team

Alan Mindell

Sports Fiction

11

35

Skunks, Nuts, and Other Stories

John L Moore

Family History

12

—

Prince and the Paupers

Guy Graybill

Local History

13

21

The Closer

Alan Mindell

Sports Fiction

14

—

Winter of the Metal People

Dennis Herrick

Historical Fiction

15

10

Wonder Boy: The Story of Carl Scheib

Lawrence Knorr

Biography

16

NEW

The Honey Trap

Wade Fowler

Thriller Fiction

17

2

Embattled Freedom

Jim Remsen

History

18

—

Dead of Autumn

Sherry Knowlton

Thriller Fiction

19

—

Prohibition’s Prince

Guy Graybill

Local History

20

9

The Sign of the Eagle

Jess Steven Hughes

Historical Fiction

21

—

The Wolf of Britannia Part II

Jess Steven Hughes

Historical Fiction

22

28

Planet Jesus #1: Flesh & Blood

Doug & Shaun Brode

Supernatural Fiction

23

—

Freemasons at Gettysburg

Sheldon Munn

History

24

—

The Wolf of Britannia Part I

Jess Steven Hughes

Historical Fiction

25

38

That Night at Surigao

Ernie Marshall

History

26

NEW

Tigers by the River

Wylie McLallen

Sports History

27

17

Seinsoth

Steven k Wagner

Sports Biography

28

24

Miss Feesenschneezen Is Ill

David Parmalee

Middle Grade Fiction

29

NEW

Keystone Tombstones Battle of Gettysburg

Farrell, Farley & Knorr

Biography

30

—

Perilous Journey

Ted Brusaw

Historical Fiction

31

40

Keystone Corruption Continues

Brad Bumsted

History

32

47

Messages from Beyond

Michele Livingston

Spirituality

33

37

There Is Something about Rough and Ready

Lawrence Knorr, et al

History

34

50

Dead of Summer

Sherry Knowlton

Thriller Fiction

35

33

Pit Bulls

Anthony Julian

History

36

6

Tories, Terror, and Tea

John L Moore

History

37

45

Jesus the Phoenician

Karim El Koussa

History

38

—

Home Is a Long Time Ago

William F Lee

Historical Fiction

39

—

Ded Reckoning

William F Lee

Espionage Thriller

40

39

Bows, Bullets, and Bears

John L Moore

History

41

41

Hour 30

Brandon Musgrave

Memoir

42

—

The Heatstroke Line

Ed Rubin

Climate Fiction

43

—

Digging Dusky Diamonds

John Lindermuth

Local History

44

—

OneWay: The Oracle

Robin McClellan

Metaphysical Fiction

45

42

Forts, Forests, and Flintlocks

John L Moore

History

46

31

Fireproof Moth

Mile Thornberry

History

47

30

What Waits Beneath

Thomas Malafarina

Horror

48

NEW

A Second Revolution

C James Gilbert

Historical Fiction

49

—

Pythagoras

Karim El Koussa

Historical Fiction

50

—

Lost in the Shadow of Fame

William Lemanski

History

Doug Beed’s Vietnam memoir Chasing Understanding in the Jungles of Vietnam, was #1 due to brisk sales, especially on the Kindle platform, upon its release. Medium Michele Livingston’s Living in the Afterlife took #2 due to her regular media appearances. Sherry Knowlton’s Dead of Springheld at #3 due to her successful Earth Day release campaign. Mike Campbell’s Amelia Earhart: The Truth at Last took #4 due to a spike in interest in the aviatrix. J M West’s latest volume in the Carlisle Crime Casesseries, Had a Dying Fall was #5 thanks to author activities.

Vermillion, SD — Sunbury Press has released Touring America by Automobile in the 1920s, William A. Cook’s compilation of his grandmother’s, Hepzy Moore Cook, travel journals.

About the Book:

A true labor of love, author William Cook has reproduced his grandmother’s (Hepzy Moore Cook) narrative of the day-to-day rigors in early twentieth century vacation travel by automobile. The journals describe in great detail, a more remote, less accessible nation that existed ninety years ago during the dawn of America’s love affair with the car. The oldest of the two journals written by Hepzy Moore Cook chronicles a challenging and sometimes very hazardous journey by automobile taken by her, the author’s grandfather, Dr. William A. Cook and father, Ralph Moore Cook in August, 1920 from Vermillion, South Dakota to Yellowstone National Park and back again to Vermillion, covering 3,180 grueling miles in the process.

Contents:

PROLOGUE: A Brief History of the Automobile and Highway in America
JOURNEY ONE: Vermillion, South Dakota, to Yellowstone Park to Vermillion, 1920
JOURNEY TWO: Trip South – Cincinnati, Ohio, to Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, and Return, 1927
About the Cooks

Touring America by Automobile in the 1920s: The Travel Journals of Hepzy Moore Cook

About the Book:
In HAD A DYING FALL, a raging fire greets the Carlisle police and fire crew where Detectives Snow and Savage discover a male body splayed across the kitchen island in a domicile on South Street. Their search for the missing wife, Kelly Sims, leads CPD detectives to one of their own: Shannon Mahoney, one of Three Musketeers cycle team. Clues lead to the Sims extended family members, many of whom have motives to kill. As the evidence mounts and suspects multiply, danger erupts, exposing damaging secrets that could destroy them all.

And what happened to Detective Erin McCoy, who was last seen at a Revolutionary War re-enactment rehearsal in Darkness at First Light?

Then another murder occurs on Jubilee Day in Mechanicsburg. The victim had ties to Dennis Sims, the Carlisle murder victim. Are the murders connected? Meanwhile, the killer stalks the streets. Where will he or she strike next?

About the Author:Had a Dying Fall is the fourth in the Carlisle Crime Cases series of murder mysteries featuring Homicide detectives Christopher Snow and Erin McCoy by Jody McGibney West, pseudonym for Joan M. West, Professor Emerita of English Studies at Harrisburg Area Community College, The Gettysburg Campus. She also taught at Messiah College and Shippensburg University as an adjunct and served as Assistant Director of the Learning Center (SU). She is a member of Sisters in Crime. She has previously published poetry and Glory in the Flower, her debut novel. It depicts four coeds who meet during the turbulent sixties.

She and her husband live near Carlisle, Pennsylvania. They have two sons and two grandsons. In her spare time, West volunteers at the Bookery—Bosler Memorial Library’s used bookstore, participates in the Litwits Book group, and reads voraciously.

Excerpt:
Black smoke plumed over orange flames from the backyard. Sparks like fireflies flew. The shed’s roof splintered, pieces somersaulting skyward. Flames erupted, feeding on the fuel. The Explorer screeched to a halt in front of a limestone Cape Cod on a corner lot. Requesting fire trucks, the CPD detectives raced around back, waving back curious neighbors. “Stay back! Other explosions may follow!”

Just as the words left Snow’s mouth, a second eruption boomed. Wood and metal spewed from the flames, hot and dangerous. Sirens approached, pump and hook and ladder jutting to the curb, with men jumping off and flying to their tasks.

Dressed in full gear, Fire Chief Lane Rusk jumped down from the cab, motioned his men to hook into the nearest hydrant. Lowered his Plexi-glass shield and raced to the carnage. Water spewed forth on the grass and house while white fire-retardant foam arced over that. “Bet the gas grill blew,” he muttered. The detectives sprinted to the back door, pounding to raise someone. The house sat mute, dark windows shuttered and curtains drawn against Dawn’s fingers of resurrecting light. The light yawned in ribbons, rolling back the grey blanket of night.

“Sorry about Mac and . . . ,” Savage said while he and Carlisle Police’s lead homicide detective Christopher Snow had sped to the suspicious fire on South Street. “We took up a collection for flowers—had them sent to your house for the family plot.”

“Yes, thanks,” Snow swallowed hard and nodded. “I can’t talk about that right now. It’s just too raw.” He scrubbed his hands over his face and shook his head. Swallowed over the lump in his throat.

Reese flipped open his cell, called HQ to find out who owned the house. “Court records list that domicile belongs to a Dennis and Kelly Sims.” Always the first on the job, Sonja Hamilton, CPD admin extraordinaire, had her pulse on the department and its personnel. She hadn’t missed a day of work in five years despite two kids, a husband, and night classes.

“We can’t raise anybody here. Their shed just blew to smithereens, but nobody came outside to investigate. Could be on vacation, but we should notify them,” Savage said.

Mechanicsburg, PA — Sunbury Press, the trade publisher based in Pennsylvania, has released its list of top selling novels of all time:

The Closerby Alan Mindell — R. A. Dickey was the first knuckleball pitcher to ever win a coveted Cy Young Award–despite spending most of his career in the minor leagues. Terry Landers, also a knuckleballer, is Dickey`s fictional counterpart in The Closer. The main difference, aside from winning the Cy Young, is that at age thirty-three, Terry has never played in the majors. Once he finally gets his chance, what follows is the heartwarming story of his impact both on the pitching mound and with a family in distress. “The Closer is an Award Winning book. Written with extraordinary compassion and deep attunement to the human psyche, Alan deftly defines the keys to a positive mind and winning the Game of Life. A book that is sure to change minds. Alan outlines the secrets to success pertinent in the life of each and every reader. Everyone wants to be a winner. From ‘Loser’ to ‘Closer’ – don’t put it down until you’ve reached the end!” — online reviewer.

the 100th human by Chris Fenwick — December 2012 – The final day of the 5000 year old Mayan calendar nears. The world is in turmoil – as wars and international tensions continue. People everywhere seem lost in the complications of day to day struggles – poverty – misfortune – anger and greed. A small team of scientists have uncovered a riddle concerning this “End of Days”. As they reveal the symbolic meaning of the riddle, their serendipitous mission is discovered by the Ancient Fraternity of the Veni Victus – determined to thwart such revelations. These two powers – of good and evil – converge. Only the spirits of the ancients know the outcome. The 100th Human is a spiritual quest delving deeply into matters of physics, metaphysics, evolution and the human condition. Join Jack, Apu and Alana as they race against time searching for those who can assist in revealing the mystery of the ancient symbols – before time literally runs out. (THIS TITLE IS OUT OF PRINT)

Winter of the Metal Peopleby Dennis Herrick — The Untold Story of America’s First Indian War. The first named war between the Europeans and the Native Americans was the nearly forgotten Tiguex War, which Spaniards and their Mexican Indian allies fought in 1540-42 against the Pueblo Indians along the Rio Grande, between present-day Albuquerque and Santa Fe in New Mexico. This historical novel “Winter of the Metal People” presents the first account of the war written from the Puebloan point of view. It follows a young Pueblo warrior who reluctantly takes leadership of his people in a time of crisis, overcoming self-doubt to lead Puebloans in successful guerilla warfare against the Spaniards. Praise for Winter of the Metal People and author Dennis Herrick: “A riveting historical novel of immense scholarship and insight. Dennis Herrick makes the story of the first American Indians in the West to face the military might of European forces as vivid and real as if Coronado’s expedition had ridden out of Mexico yesterday. Winter of the Metal People will forever influence your perception of the stunning landscapes and rich cultures of the Southwest.”—Margaret Coel, author of Killing Custer

The Sign of the Eagle by Jess Steven Hughes — This breathtaking historical novel of action and suspense is set in the year 71 A.D. amid the exotic and vibrant streets of Ancient Rome. Macha, the strong-willed daughter of a legendary Celtic British king and wife of the Roman tribune, Titus, is the only one who can prove her husband innocent of treason, solve the murders of two slaves who possessed information that could have exonerated Titus, and ultimately save the life of the Roman Emperor Vespasian. Vivacious and iron-willed, Macha undertakes a dangerous journey and fight for her life to evade assassins through the city’s treacherous back alleys, notorious bath houses, and the awe-inspiring palaces of the Roman elite. With time running out to save her husband and the emperor from certain death, Macha can count on only two allies, the esteemed Senator Bassus-a family friend-and her faithful slave, a resolute and clever Moorish woman, Shafer. Arrayed against Macha and Titus are the wealthy and wicked Pollia, once scorned as a bride by Titus, and Falco, a military tribune and womanizer, who offers to be Macha’s protector once Titus is condemned and executed. Join Macha in her quest to exonerate her husband…and discover the real threat against the Emperor…

The Cursed Manby Keith Rommel — WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF DEATH FELL IN LOVE WITH YOU? Alister Kunkle believes death is in love with him. A simple smile from friend or stranger is all it takes to encourage death to kill. With his family deceased and a path of destruction behind him, Alister sits inside a mental institution, sworn to silence and separated from the rest of the world, haunted by his inability to escape death’s preferential treatment. But when a beautiful psychologist arrives at the institution and starts offering him care, Alister braces himself for more killings. When none follow, he tries to figure out whether he truly is insane or if death has finally come to him in the form of a woman. COMING SOON AS A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE.

About the Book:
When a beloved state senator plunges to his death at Alexa Williams’ feet in the Capitol Rotunda, the authorities suspect suicide. Although the powerful chair of the Environmental Resources and Energy Committee was at the center of a controversial new bill to expand hydraulic fracturing, he was also rumored to be ill. Shaken, Alexa tries to move past the disturbing incident by concentrating on work. She’s leading a senate commission on sex trafficking. Plus, she’s helping an old college roommate sue a natural gas company for their role in causing her daughter’s rare cancer.

In researching the lawsuit, Alexa becomes embroiled in the high-stakes politics of fracking. As the relationship with her state trooper boyfriend drifts onto the rocks, Alexa is drawn to a charismatic state legislator who’s leading an anti-fracking crusade. Then, the police shock Alexa with the news that she could be in danger; she’s a witness to the senator’s murder, not his suicide.

When Alexa narrowly escapes a sniper’s bullet, she must discover why she’s a target―and who she can trust—before the next shot hits its mark.

With Sherry Knowlton’s trademark mix of feminism, history, romance, and fast-paced thrills, Dead of Spring skyrockets from the fracking fields of the Marcellus Shale to the Three Mile Island nuclear disaster of 1979 to the rolling hills of Tuscany to the halls of Pennsylvania state government. In this suspenseful tale of corruption and runaway greed, Alexa Williams proves, once again, that she’s a formidable heroine. The twists and turns keep will keep you on the edge of your seat.

What Others Are Saying:
DEAD OF SPRING combines legislative corruption with corporate greed that ends in deadly violence. Heroine Alexa Williams resists intimidation to battle evil at the highest levels of Pennsylvania government and commerce. Spurring her on is a love for the environment and for a friend whose daughter’s cancer is caused by fracking. Here is a spellbinding yarn jerked straight from today’s frightening headlines. — Kay Kendall, award-winning author of historical mysteries

About the Author:
Sherry Knowlton is the author of the Alexa Williams series of crime thrillers, Dead of Autumn and Dead of Summer. When not working on her health care consulting business or traveling around the world, Knowlton lives in the mountains of South Central Pennsylvania.

Excerpt:
A subtle shift in light caught Alexa’s attention. Her eyes rose from the notebook as she sensed a whisper of motion in the open space above. She gasped as a body sailed through the air, careening toward the grand central staircase. For a moment, time stalled and the body appeared to drift in slow motion as it floated through the bright rotunda. But, as it neared their bench, the body seemed to pick up speed. Alexa watched, frozen in place with hand to her mouth in horror, as it hurtled closer and closer.

Then, with a tremendous crash, the body smashed into one of the tall winged statues that flanked the foot of the stairway, shattering a beaded crystal orb the angel held aloft. A spray of blood and glass beads spiraled in a shiny pink mist from the falling man as he bounced off the statue. Losing forward momentum, the body made an abrupt drop and slammed into the clay cobblestone floor.

Keisha’s shrieks muted the leaden thud of body hitting bricks. Recovering from her initial shock, Alexa leapt to her feet, scattering her coat, notebook, and papers to the floor. Slipping on crystal beads and uneven bricks, she rushed toward the motionless form that had landed less than ten feet away.

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — Sunbury Press has released David Parmelee’s Miss Feesenschneezen Is Ill, a humorous middle grade novella about an indispensable teacher.

About the Book:When the beloved teacher of a “tough class” is out sick for a week, everyone must endure a succession of colorful substitutes. Each brings a lesson; all bring smiles.

“Miss Feesenschneezen Is Ill” is a middle-grade chapter book that entertains.”

David Parmelee’s Miss Feesenschneezen Is Ill began life as a series of little vignettes hidden in his fourth-grade daughter Andrea’s lunchbox to make her laugh at school. Discovering them many years later (his daughter is now completing her BA in film production design) he thought there might be a fun book in them. He wrote the story, which turned out to offer way more twists and turns than he thought (including a whirlwind tour through the U.S. medical system) and and asked illustrator Maria DeCerce to bring the 38 characters to life with her magical pen.

Miss Feesenschneezen is a really fun book for smart kids who like to read and have their own opinions about school. School is the place where young people, going about the work of deciding who they are, are taught by older people who have done that work long ago, but who usually have only a dim memory of what it was like. The worlds collide in a sometimes absurd and comical way. The very, very best teachers, like Miss Feesenschneezen, understand this.

About the Author:
David Parmelee is a father of four from Pennsylvania. An English Literature and Theatre student at Brown, he taught school briefly and now teaches adults, which is far more difficult, and CCD at his parish on Sundays. David is an actor and director in community theatre and is undertaking some playwriting. His first book is The Sea Is a Thief (Sunbury, 2013), a historical novel set on the island of Chincoteague during the Civil War. He also promises more of Miss Feesenschneezen. David loves bicycles and the cycling world, and truly does believe The Cannibal was the best rider of all time.

Excerpt:
“Miss Feesenschneezen is ill,” Principal Armstrong announced. It came as a surprise to us. She didn’t look ill yesterday, when she gave us our assignments for the chapter on Native Americans in her usual calm and quiet end-of-the day voice. She may have coughed once or twice.

She coughed quite a bit more when she called Principal Armstrong the next morning, and sounded like nothing so much as a duck. He could barely recognize her voice. In between wheezes, she explained that she sometimes came down with colds and touches of bronchitis as a girl back in Sullivan County, though this had hardly ever occurred since she moved east. She probably had the same thing again. Her mother used to give her a spoonful of cinnamon and honey, and wrap her throat with a piece of flannel from an old set of footie pajamas. On the flannel, she would drip ten careful drops of eucalyptus oil from a brown glass bottle. Her mother blamed the bronchitis on mold spores in the damp mountain air.

On this day, Miss Feesenschneezen called her family doctor, just to be on the safe side. He recommended she come into the office for a quick visit, even though it didn’t sound serious. His schedule was packed with patients, but he could squeeze her in around lunchtime. She was a patient he never minded seeing.

And so, Principal Armstrong explained, Miss Feesenschneezen would be out for the day.